Taito
Japanese video-game and entertainment company known for Space Invaders, arcade operations, and a long-running catalog of influential coin-operated games.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Taito is a Japanese video-game and entertainment company whose history spans trading, vending equipment, jukeboxes, electro-mechanical amusements, arcade games, consumer software, mobile entertainment, and amusement-facility operation. Michael Kogan established the Japanese business in 1953 as the Taito Trading Company after earlier commercial activity in Shanghai and a move to postwar Japan. The company initially imported and distributed products such as vodka, vending machines, perfume machines, and jukeboxes. As Japan’s economy recovered, Taito concentrated increasingly on vending equipment and music machines, becoming an important Japanese agent for imported jukebox technology and adapting the business to local musical tastes. Taito entered the amusement business through electro-mechanical games during the 1960s and moved into video games in the early 1970s. Engineer Tomohiro Nishikado was central to this transition. Early releases included Elepong, Soccer, TV Basketball, Speed Race, and Western Gun, the latter three also reaching North American arcades through licensing and localization arrangements with Midway. These games helped establish Taito as an international arcade publisher and demonstrated the company’s strength in racing, sports, shooting, and action formats. The defining turning point came in 1978 with Space Invaders, designed by Nishikado. Its fixed-screen alien-shooting format became a worldwide arcade phenomenon and contributed substantially to the late-1970s expansion of the video-game industry. The title also established visual and commercial patterns that influenced subsequent arcade design, popular culture, merchandise, and game publishing. Taito followed it with a broad series of successful properties, including Bubble Bobble, Arkanoid, and numerous other arcade and home-platform releases. During the 1980s and 1990s, Taito expanded its international distribution, developed games for home systems, operated overseas subsidiaries, and explored new delivery technologies. A proposed WOWOW CD-ROM and satellite-based console project announced in 1992 was never released. Taito America ceased operations in 1996, while its European distribution company was liquidated in 1998. The company also entered mobile-phone-related activities through a 2000 merger involving Kyocera Multimedia Corporation. Taito’s corporate ownership changed significantly in the 2000s. Square Enix announced an acquisition in 2005, obtained effective control later that year, and completed a restructuring that made Taito a wholly owned Square Enix subsidiary and removed it from the Tokyo Stock Exchange. A further reorganization in 2010 separated home-console software activities from the arcade and amusement operation. The current Taito Corporation was formed through the combination of the arcade-operating entity ES1 Corporation and the predecessor Taito structure; home-console publishing activities were transferred into Square Enix. Today, Taito operates primarily as an arcade, amusement, and intellectual-property brand within Square Enix Group. Its Japanese Taito Game Station centers combine arcade cabinets, prize machines, and other entertainment offerings. The company also develops and licenses games, distributes selected classic properties on contemporary platforms, and sells or supports character goods, plush products, toys, and UFO-catcher prizes. Its strategic value lies in the enduring recognition of its historical franchises, its arcade operating capabilities, and its role as one of Japan’s formative video-game companies.
History
Michael Kogan’s commercial activities associated with Taito began before the Japanese company was established. In 1944, he founded Taitung in Shanghai, where the business dealt in floor coverings, wigs, and hog bristles. Political change in China led him to liquidate that enterprise in 1950 and move operations to Japan. A clothing-distribution venture, Taito Yoko, proved unsuccessful. On August 24, 1953, Kogan replaced it with the Taito Trading Company, working with lawyer and former newspaperman Akio Nakatani. The new company initially pursued several unrelated businesses. It operated a vodka distillery, imported vending machines for peanuts and perfume, and later focused on jukeboxes when competition made the vodka operation unattractive. Taito refurbished damaged machines obtained from United States military bases and eventually became an authorized Japanese distributor for AMI equipment. A relationship with Seeburg strengthened its position in Japan. By 1960, the company had sold more than 1,500 jukeboxes, combining Japanese records with imported music to suit local customers. Taito began producing electro-mechanical amusements in the 1960s. Crown Soccer Special appeared in 1967, followed by Crown Basketball in 1968. The latter performed strongly at a US fair and illustrated Taito’s growing interest in exportable amusement products. The company changed its name to Taito Corporation in August 1972 and established Taito America in Chicago in 1973. The transition to electronic video games was led by Tomohiro Nishikado, who joined Taito in 1968. After working on electro-mechanical shooting games, Nishikado investigated transistor-transistor logic and integrated-circuit technology. Taito’s early video-game releases included the ping-pong cabinet Elepong in 1973, followed by Soccer and Davis Cup. TV Basketball, Speed Race, and Western Gun expanded the company’s arcade portfolio. Midway localized or published several of these titles in North America, giving Taito an early international route for its games. Nishikado’s Space Invaders, released in 1978, transformed Taito’s position. The game became a global arcade hit and is widely associated with the beginning of the golden age of arcade video games. Taito continued to produce influential titles, including Bubble Bobble and Arkanoid in 1986. The company also maintained overseas branches and pursued both arcade and home-console publishing. After Kogan’s death in February 1984, his son Abba Kogan became chairman and Akio Nakanishi became president. Taito joined the Kyocera group in the 1980s and merged with Pacific Industrial and Japan Vending Machine in 1986. In the 1990s it proposed WOWOW, a CD-ROM console intended to provide arcade-style software and satellite-delivered content, but the system was never launched. Taito America ended operations in 1996, and Taito Europe was liquidated in 1998. A 2000 merger with Kyocera Multimedia Corporation brought the company into mobile-phone-related business. Square Enix announced its acquisition of Taito in 2005. After obtaining effective control and restructuring the corporate entities, Square Enix made Taito a wholly owned subsidiary in 2006 and delisted it from the Tokyo Stock Exchange. In 2008, Square Enix liquidated Taito Art and Taito Tech after concluding that their purposes had been fulfilled. A major internal reorganization took place in 2010. Taito’s home-console development and publishing activities were placed in Taito Soft Corporation and then folded into Square Enix. The arcade and mobile operations were transferred through the combination of the predecessor Taito structure with ES1 Corporation, creating the present Taito Corporation. Since then, Taito has concentrated on arcade facilities, amusement equipment, prize products, mobile and digital distribution, and the continued exploitation of its classic properties. It has also periodically revisited contemporary console and online platforms, including a 2016 Facebook Instant Games release and a 2018 announcement concerning renewed console publishing.
- 2018
Console publishing return announced
[1]Taito announced plans to resume publishing for contemporary home-console platforms.
- 2010
Present Taito Corporation formed
[1]The arcade and mobile businesses were reorganized through the combination of the predecessor Taito structure and ES1 Corporation.
- 2005
Square Enix acquires Taito
[1]Square Enix announced and completed a controlling acquisition of Taito.
- 1992
WOWOW console project announced
[1]Taito proposed a CD-ROM and satellite-download console, but the project was never released.
- 1986
Bubble Bobble and Arkanoid released
[1]Two of Taito’s most durable arcade properties entered the market.
- 1978
Space Invaders released
[1]Tomohiro Nishikado’s shooter became a worldwide arcade phenomenon and a landmark of video-game history.
- 1973
Taito enters video games
[1]Elepong, Soccer, and Davis Cup marked Taito’s initial video-game releases.
- 1972
Company renamed Taito Corporation
[1]The Taito Trading Company adopted the Taito Corporation name.
- 1967
Crown Soccer Special released
[1]Taito released an electro-mechanical soccer game, illustrating its early move into amusement products.
- 1953
Taito Trading Company established in Japan
[1]Michael Kogan established the Japanese Taito Trading Company on August 24 after the failure of his clothing-distribution venture.
Products and positioning
Heritage Japanese arcade and entertainment brand combining classic game intellectual property with amusement-facility operation, prize entertainment, and selected contemporary digital releases.
Arcade video game · 1978
Space Invaders
Released in 1978 and designed by Tomohiro Nishikado, Space Invaders is Taito’s signature property. Its fixed-screen shooting structure, descending alien formations, escalating speed, and high-score competition helped define the arcade format and contributed to the industry’s late-1970s expansion. The characters and visual motifs remain among the most recognizable symbols of early video games.
Arcade action game · 1986
Bubble Bobble
Bubble Bobble is a cooperative action game released in 1986. Players control bubble-blowing dragon characters, trapping enemies and clearing single-screen stages. Its accessible mechanics, two-player design, colorful characters, and numerous sequels and spin-offs made it one of Taito’s enduring arcade properties.
Arcade action game · 1986
Arkanoid
Arkanoid is Taito’s 1986 block-breaking game built around a paddle, a bouncing ball, destructible formations, and power-ups. It extended the established brick-breaker concept with stage design, enemies, and distinctive visual identity. The property has received ports, sequels, and later digital distribution.
Arcade racing game · 1974
Speed Race
Speed Race, released in 1974, was an early Taito driving game and an important step in the company’s video-game development. Its North American version was distributed under the name Wheels. The title helped establish Taito’s interest in racing games and supported its early international arcade presence.
Arcade shooting game · 1975
Western Gun
Western Gun was a 1975 arcade shooting game developed by Taito and released in North America by Midway as Gun Fight. It is notable for its western theme, two-player confrontation, and early use of character and projectile interaction in an arcade setting.
Arcade and amusement facilities
Taito Game Stations
Taito Game Stations are Taito-operated amusement centers in Japan. They typically combine arcade video games with prize machines, UFO-catcher equipment, and other entertainment offerings. The network gives Taito a direct operating presence in addition to its role as a game developer and intellectual-property owner.
Brand decisions
2018
Return to contemporary console publishingStrategyBackground
Taito stated that placing its intellectual properties on current platforms could support their continued commercial use, while acknowledging that the console market was challenging.
Action taken
The company announced plans for re-releases and possible original games for eighth-generation consoles.
Aftermath
The announcement marked a renewed public emphasis on Taito’s console software ambitions within Square Enix Group.
2010
Separation of home-console and arcade operationsStrategyBackground
Square Enix reorganized Taito’s businesses to consolidate arcade operations while placing home-console software activities within Square Enix.
Action taken
Taito Soft Corporation was separated and later folded into Square Enix, while ES1 Corporation became the present Taito Corporation and inherited arcade and mobile operations.
Aftermath
Taito’s principal identity became centered on arcades, amusement facilities, mobile activity, and related entertainment operations.
2005
Square Enix acquisition of TaitoM&ABackground
Square Enix sought to expand beyond its established software business into arcades and related entertainment venues.
Action taken
Square Enix purchased a controlling stake in Taito and subsequently moved toward full ownership.
Aftermath
Taito became a wholly owned subsidiary and was delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange after the restructuring.
Announced purchase consideration. ¥45.16 billion announced consideration for 247,900 shares (2005 announcement)
Recent events
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